http://www.policymic.com/articles/89477/the-disturbing-piece-of-our-justice-system-that-s-hurting-black-americans
As sentient human beings, as Americans, and as members of society, we have a moral and emotional need to believe that our judicial system is functional and fair.
It's disconcerting to think that two men who commit identical crimes would face different punishments at the hand of the law. Because, after all, when someone commits a crime, the system should be a clean, fair and measurable process. But it's not. And this is largely because of something troubling that looms at each step, something that can save or destroy you. And it can be summed up in one word: discretion.
We might not want to believe it, but the legal system does not only deliver justice according to law, it also employs justice according to discretion. This is problematic because it opens the door to biases, some we may not even be conscious of. As William J. Stunz wrote in his book The Collapse of American Criminal Justice,
"Discretionary justice too often amounts to discriminatory justice." Ta-Nehisi Coates recently wrote in the Atlantic, "Humans tend to have biases, and the systems we construct often reflect those biases. … Citing racism in our justice system isn't mere shaming, it's a call for a humility and self-awareness, which presently evades us." They might seem like big statements to make, but they can be broken down and applied step by step.
According to FBI data from Stunz's book, there were about 23 million felonies in 2008. But American police officers and prosecutors, who operate with limited resources, only convict about 1.1 million felonies per year. As a result, "The criminals who pay the highest price for their crimes will be those who are most cheaply caught and convicted. This dynamic inevitably produces discriminatory punishment," Stunz wrote. (Image credit: AP)
Who is getting caught more frequently, and why? According to Stunz, 10% of black adults and 9% of white adults use illegal drugs, but black people are nine times more likely to serve prison sentences for drug crimes. The fact that they could be dealing drugs more than whites "might explain some of that gap but not most of it, much less all," he wrote.
this is something that i think will be looming over us for years maybe decades longer and with the right wing push for private prisons to fuel it looks like little help for those in that net. there will be changes but they will have to like all other controversial laws and political acts really have a chance if we the people want to commit to change it a sign here a sign there a voice here or there but not enough boots on the ground anywhere will keep the status quo.
we will only see changes if and when we go after them remember Pres. "yes we can" and most important "we are the change we've been waiting for" i'm sure that scared hell out of a lot of us but the thought of doing something together is not as scary as a lone voice or one hand held high,
but many hands held high and counted can block out the opposition to your achieving that illusive dream not just surviving and never realizing their interpretation of your American dream that i believe is dead and stinking thanks to republican obstruction and destruction, your dream is an attainable reality if we all come together Black, White, Hispanic and Asian, we are the majority the established power that is will soon be what was.
